Iago

[WidgetAlley]

Malevolent, dark and shadowy: sinuous black musk, wet leather and vetiver.

 

Swap with the lovely Miseraya. Vetiver's iffy, black musk scary, and I can't smell leather.... but dammit, one of my friends wrote me Cassio/Iago smut once, and I wants to try it.

 

In the Imp: Thick, baby-powdery green vetiver with underpinnings of dark musk. Mostly vetiver, though. No leather (surprise surprise... not) It's heavy and wet and woody and just generally intimidating. I'm going to be sparing with this one.

 

Wet: Spicy green vetiver. Black musk. A smoke note. A slightly slick, vaguely powdery, almost smell that's a good deal closer to leather than any other blend I've sniffed before-- hooray! Too bad the musk and the vetiver are so stifling; I like the leathery note a lot. There's something a bit transparent and sweet on top... I can't tell if it's part of the leather note or the nice bit of the vetiver or what.

 

Dry: This really smells like the male counterpart of Wanda to my nose. There's that same highly polished leather note... not rawhide or soft suede or the comforting leather of a leather jacket, but the stiff, thick kind that shines like glass. There's a bit of smoke, that same vaguely sweet something, a good deal of musk, and a grassy vetiver behind it all. It's nice, and on the right person this could be fantastic, but I think I liked Wanda a bit better. The sweetness in here is a bit offputting, whereas Wanda's wine-and-flowers approach seemed like just the right amount of feminine.

 

[edit] The very final drydown of this? Herbal vanilla. Swear to all the Gods. Skin, allow me to say.... WTF?!?!?!?!?

Edited July 22, 2006 by WidgetAlley

[AliBabble]

another frimp from the wonderful lab. iago starts out mostly vetiver. i like vetiver, although i don't wear it very much. anyhow, i also smell the leather, and something smoky, dark, almost like burning leaves, or burnt tobacco... i like this! although it is rather manly, it is sort of sexy. the leather comes out more and more on my skin, till it is mostly that - leather. i find the smell of leather rather sexy, so this could be a good bed-time scent for me when i am in a certain mood...

[forspecial_plate]

The throw from Iago reminds me of the taste of these:

 

 

Panda herbal licorice (in a green box, in case the image ever gets lost). If I sniff closer to my skin the leather is more prominent. It's funny because you would think it's the vetiver causing the herbal association for me but really, I can't much pick out the vetiver here, it's blended really smoothly with the leather and musk. There is a little powder creeping in as it dries down, but not enough to worry me.

 

It really has staying power too. Stays pretty strong after a couple hours: when I washed it off to try something else, I could still detect the Iago underneath (and it doesn't layer well with Blood Moon, let me tell you...). Anyway I do like Iago, mostly because it's so unusual. I know if I wear this to a dance club nobody else will be smelling like me. For that reason I'll keep it around, but probably won't wear it much. It's very emphatic.

[steffanina]

Iago-

 

In Bottle: Okay, I THINK I've pegged what vetiver is by this time. It must be that wood-and-chocolate smell that I smell in this. Anyway, I like it, and this is not at all insect-repellent-y or eye-watering in the bottle, as I might fear from a scent that's supposed to be more masculine.

 

Wet: Hello! Woo, that's different. What am I smelling? There's a plasticky undertone...

 

Dry: You know what that smell is? Latex balloon. Just as an undertone, but I don't like it. It goes away after about 45 minutes, but what's left is nothing that enchants me. It's like baby powder gone off. Where's the leather? Sigh.

 

Overall: Uninteresting.

[Diva Urd]

I received a sniffie of this in a swap with the wonderful Midnight Aeval.

 

When I unwrapped it, I got a little on my fingers... wow! Awesome scent that lasts a VERY long time.

 

And then, I put some on the husband... on a man, it's even better *swoons*

 

I won't be able to keep my fingers off him whenever he decides to wear it, which is a very good thing

 

Big bottle ahoy!

[margravine]

On me it was all new car smell. Unfortunate. Results were a lot better on my husband. It went from all dark musk and leather to lovely vetiver after a while. Unfortunately there was a long in-between period where he insisted that he smelled like Old Spice and was disgruntled. I'll have to give up on this one or else I fear he'll rebel against all future anointing.

[ctate]

In the imp: Oooh, nice. Sweet thick musk, hot suede, and an elusive wintergreen-cypress-camphor note that must be the vetiver.

 

On me, wet: Dang, the leather disappeared immediately, leaving vetiver over musk. Still nice, but not as interesting.

 

On me, dry: The suede is trying to come back but not quite succeeding. The musk has also turned a little sugary, and taken on some aspect that makes my nose tingly/sneezy. Wild. The vetiver has toned down a lot, too. This is still attractive, but just a little weird because of the musk's transformation. I think I'll hang on to it anyway.

[columbus]

In the bottle: Vetiver with just a hint of leather

 

Wet on the skin: Oh no. How could I have forgotten the way my body reacts to vetiver? Total ampage.

 

As it dries, I can catch just the slightest hit of leather underneath the vetiver, but the teeniest amount imaginable. I really like the concept of this oil (Iago was always a favourite Shakespearean villain for me), but sadly my chemistry has to say no to the vertier.

 

I can imagine that, given the right person, this would be a very sinister, masculine scent, but on me, it’s just a headache.

[corvidae]

Masculine? Sure. But it smells good on me, like I've just had a tumble with someone incredibly sexy.

 

Vetiver is a good friend of mine - it smells like chocolate dirt, and you can't go wrong there.

 

This scent smells like I would imagine the sadistic, somewhat frightening but still verray, verray sexy gentleman to smell like. I know - it smells like Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights! My favorite.

 

I'm going to marry this scent and we'll have horribly messed up children together.

[sofiaviolet]

Eurgh, dark and murky and pretty darn evil. Also, slightly nauseating. I almost always hate hate hate vetiver because it smells like a stagnant swamp or something. Eeew.

[mornatasare]

On me the leather stayed and stayed. There was thick, wet, herbal vetiver at the beginning, which I like somewhat, but the leather pushed through towards the end and really rounded out the smell once it dried. Eventually the vetiver wafted off, but an edge of it stayed with the leather, which lasted a good five hours or so.

[theseagrows]

i was iffy on the vetiver in this, since it can go either way, but i think it works for me in this blend! i get kind of a powdery leather from iago. perhaps the musk turns a bit powdery? and the vetiver doesn't overpower like it can. a very nice leather scent, i may get a bottle of this someday.

Edited November 17, 2006 by theseagrows

[Iceblink]

Vetiver and I just aren't going to ever see eye-to-eye, and that's all I smell here (with a teeeeeeny bit of leather peeking through). Yuuuurgh.

[supremegoddessofall]

Well hello De Sade! Seriously, other than being a bit muskier, this is all De Sade - wet black leather that makes me want to do naughty things. Great scent!

[Thursdae]

Count me in with the folks who don't want to get too up close and personal with vetiver. High marks for pungency.

[Elemcee]

Iago, on one wrist, smelt like leather being scrubbed with soap and, on the other, liquourice. It's nice, but not really the malicious malcontent I was hoping for.

 

This would probably work better on a far more masculine chemistry than mine, though. Someone who would bring out all of the leather and none of the smoke.

[evcelt]

This is a dark and stylishly villainous scent - what I hoped Villain would be, perhaps... makes me want to go out and do some crimes.

 

The leather isn't really noticeable, except maybe at the very beginning. It starts out mostly vetiver, undercut with the musk, then goes vicey-versy on me by the end.

 

This has a strong throw on me, and lasts a good long time.

[baranoouji]

Iago made me think of the closet at the boathouse: cold, damp, slight mildewy, full of leather laced boat shoes and component parts oily with slide grease, and the pungent funk of unwashed teenage rowers.

 

Academically, it's certainly an interesting smell and one that made me grin. Those were some of the best times in my life.

 

But... dear god, the funk. And not in the George Clinton and the P-funk sort of way.

Edited February 6, 2007 by baranoouji

[Miladygrey]

In the bottle: Sweet and musky, with an edge of amber (for some reason). Good, I like amber.

 

Wet: Not bad. Still with the amber. Definitely a male scent. I'm guessing that's the musk combining with this mysterious vetiver stuff.

 

Dry: Um, I want to do naughty things with my wrist now. It changed really quickly to leather and smoke tinged with sweetness. Guh. Completely dominant male, Christopher Eccleston in black smirking at me. I described this as "S&M in a bottle" to my fiancé, and got his complete and undivided attention.

 

In short: YES PLEASE I WILL TAKE TEN!

 

 

 

Love as thou wilt, and be wise

[filigree_shadow]

At first I smell a whole lot of vetiver, but as it's drying the leather comes out nice and strong. The musk seems to be going a little powdery on me, but since this seems like an extremely masculine scent I don't think it really matters what it does on me. This imp is going straight over to my hubby. I like this scent a lot. I hope he wears it.

[storme]

In the imp: that's a LOT of vetiver and a tinge of musk and no leather yet.

 

On me, wet: Ah, leather, sweet leather, I love how my skin amps you. The musk blends pleasingly with this, too.

 

On me, dry: sweaty leather and musk. This is not really much different to something like Dragon's Hide now, to be honest.

 

Verdict: Nice enough, but I have leather scents I will probably choose above this.

[gwynethr]

My first attempt at commenting in the reviews, so I hope I don't blow it.

 

I thought this would be a perfect GC scent on me, and was so eager to try it. I love all the notes. Alas, it turns to baby powder on me. I can't believe that those kinds of notes can turn to baby powder, which I hate, but they do. I can almost -- almost -- smell the leather, but it's not quite there for me. (I seem to have a lot of trouble smelling leather in any of the BPAL scents that use it, and I'm not sure why, as that's one of my favorite smells in the whole world. Weird.)

 

::cries::

 

I love the smell in the bottle, though, so may try to get a diffuser and see if I can enjoy it that way.

[goth_huntress]

I've been looking for masculine scents for inspiration in my writing, and Iago is just right. I even know which of my characters would wear it. Now I just need to find the scents for my other boys.

[mr_5th]

I wanted this to be the sex in a bottle scent you ladies described but I only had a mere glimpse of the dark lust.

 

Bottle: I could take it or leave it in the bottle. but I've never been too good with the concentrations.

 

Wet: This started out so promising. The smell of an old library when it rained and the windows were open. The vetiver was there adding the nice dark green touch. It kind of reminded me of saddle leather in a mossy forest.

 

And then it dried.

 

Dry: Musk, Musk, and more musk. It smelled like someone took the leather saddle into the ladies room and used it as a changing table. All baby powder. And it won't come off!

 

If only the wet stage would last.

[cranberry]

Vetivert and leather. And a sweet smell that’s surprising – amber? It does remind me of black licorice for some reason but not quite. It smells waxy and thick. Pretty good in fact. I love leather, like black musk sometimes and usually like vetivert, but for some reason I was convinced that this would push over into the way too masculine side and I wouldn’t like it. So this is a surprising scent for me. Yes, I can see that it would smell amazing on a man.

 

I got it - this reminds me strongly of Haunted. It must be the black musk. While Haunted went powdery on me, this is not. Smelling this makes me want to layer it with *something*…. but for the life of me I can’t figure out what.